Traynor grasps football and academics
James Traynor was one of the area’s top wide receivers the past two years, but his sparkling football career came very close to never happening. “I actually didn’t even play football until I got to ninth grade,” Traynor said. “I played baseball and basketball before high school, but no football.”
Traynor needed a little coaxing to try the sport.
“Brian Salisbury was my basketball coach and was kind of like a mentor to me and some of my friends, and he talked me into playing football,” Traynor recalled. “He just told me I was a tough kid and he thought I could do it. It was a big decision for me and he talked me into it.
“It worked out pretty well.”
A three-year letterman, Traynor rang up nine touchdowns and three two-point conversions his senior season with the Commodores under coach Lew Sweitzer to finish in the top 10 in the Herald-Standard TD Club for area scoring.
Traynor, who won the football team’s annual PAC Award, had six receiving TDs and also scored on a reverse.
He added a pair of touchdowns on the other side of the ball as a defensive end/outside linebacker with an interception return and a fumble return.
The 6-foot, 168-pound senior was known for his good hands in football, and also showed he had a solid grasp on academics as well.
Traynor’s 3.64 grade point average is tops among boys at Frazier.
Traynor, the son of James and Mary Traynor of Perryopolis, was selected as the top male student/athlete at Frazier High School and will receive a $500 scholarship through the Fayette County Student/Athlete Scholarship Program.
The program, sponsored by Davis and Davis Attorneys at Law in conjunction with the Herald-Standard, will provide $7,000 in scholarship money to 14 of Fayette County’s best and brightest student/athletes.
A banquet will culminate the program on Sunday, June 3, at the Historic Summit Inn. At that time, each of 14 honorees will receive $500 toward a college education. HSTV will videotape the program.
Traynor maintained discipline in his academics.
“Schoolwork was something I more-or-less did on my own,” Traynor said. “My parents always checked to make sure I had everything done, but it was never really a problem. I knew that was important and always took care of it.”
Traynor also was involved in several school and community activities. He was a member of the Interact Club and the Foreign Language Club, and played trumpet in the concert band and the jazz band. He also was an altar server at St. John the Baptist Roman Catholic Church of Perryopolis.
The 18-year-old Traynor played other sports besides football. He was a three-year letterman in basketball under coach Larry Mikesell, whom he holds in high regard.
Traynor was good enough to be named to the FCCA All-County team as a junior and senior in both sports. He also won the school’s Scholar/Athlete Award as a senior in both sports.
Traynor also played baseball his senior year under coach John Phillips, earning a starting job in left field. It was another sport he was persuaded to play.
“My friends talked me into it,” Traynor said. “I kind of wanted to play as a sophomore and junior, but I decided to work instead. This year I decided to put my job off until after baseball season and tried out for the team. I liked it. I wish I would’ve went out sooner.”
Traynor was a two-year starter in basketball who also saw significant playing time off the bench as a sophomore. He helped the Commodores reach the postseason in 2005, when it won a playoff game, and again in 2006.
The point guard had several moments in the spotlight. He helped the Commodores win the Southmoreland Tournament, earning MVP honors along with teammate Greg Johnson, and he poured in a game-high 35 points against Bentworth.
Football became Traynor’s best sport, however, and it wasn’t by accident.
“My sophomore year Larry Wilson was my coach and he taught me a lot about route running,” Traynor said. “And Tom (Woody) Salisbury helped me learn how to catch the ball the right way, with your hands and finger tips. If a ball hit my chest when I caught it, he’d make me do pushups.”
Traynor worked hard enough to become a dangerous offensive weapon, but by the end of his senior season, everyone knew it … especially Frazier’s opponents.
“I had a pretty good junior year, so we threw the ball more this year, but halfway through the season teams started double-teaming me,” said Traynor. “That made it pretty tough.”
The Commodores missed the postseason, but almost wrecked Chartiers-Houston’s playoff hopes with a 22-14 upset win late in the season.
“I had two touchdowns and about 110 yards (receiving) in that game, but we won it on a goal-line stand,” Traynor said. “They were on the 1-yard line and we stopped them on fourth down. They made the playoffs, so that was a pretty good game for us, knowing we beat a playoff team.”
Traynor thanked his parents for being there throughout his athletic career.
“They went to every single one of my games, no matter where it was,” Traynor said. “They encouraged me to play.”
Traynor has two older sisters, Margeaux and Mallory, who are both Frazier graduates, and one younger sister, Brittany, who is a sophomore at Frazier.
Traynor will continue his football career at Allegheny College in Meadville, where he was awarded a Leadership Scholarship. He intends to major in computer science.